Cybertruck vault sub-trunk fully opened! + Tonneau cover and tailgate lowering in action!

[CyberGus]

Oh man..... I LOVE the sound of that CT as it drives away.

Sound? What sound??!?

oh right

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[CyberGus]

What’s the downside of having a midgate? Does it weaken the structure of the truck, would the seals around it wear out and let water into the cab? If Tesla doesn’t have one on the Cybertruck the engineers would have had good reason to leave it off.

 

[CYBRSMTH]

 

[Rutrow]

That’s true. I think there are so many prototypes being tested out there. What’s the downside of having a midgate? Does it weaken the structure of the truck, would the seals around it wear out and let water into the cab? If Tesla doesn’t have one on the Cybertruck the engineers would have had good reason to leave it off.

The reason I don't want a mid-gate is probably the same reason there aren't many mid-gates that have been made and retained. It's all the compromises that have to be made to have one. They probably leak (eventually), they probably rattle (eventually), they're probably louder on the highway (even when closed), they're probably costly, and they probably rarely get used. Having to live everyday with the downsides for the rare occasion they come in handy probably means there are few repeat buyers which is the death nail for models.

Even the folks who swear they use it every night because they live in their car would probably quit using it because it couldn't lie flush with the truck bed so made it uncomfortable to put an air mattress over. If you haul long lumber on occasion, renting flat bed from the big box hardware store will be more convenient and if you do that on a regular basis, a roof rack or trailer is likely your best choice.

 

[cvalue13]

If you have an onboard air compressor and no vengeful BF/GF who'd slash your tires, only one out of a million of us will need a spare.

momma always said i was one in a million

 

[greggertruck]

That’s true. I think there are so many prototypes being tested out there. What’s the downside of having a midgate? Does it weaken the structure of the truck, would the seals around it wear out and let water into the cab? If Tesla doesn’t have one on the Cybertruck the engineers would have had good reason to leave it off.

Nothing at all, people just thing the truck needs to be a dumb boat.

Buy a alumicraft and move on.. GIMME MIDGATE

 

[cvalue13]

One thing though, I don't think that the tonneau being inside the wall of the "midgate" would stop it from folding down. Remember that the tonneau makes a sharp ~270 degree turn at the top of the bed as it transitions from the back wall to the overhead area of the truck bed. No reason that the tonneau couldn't just fold right along with the back wall of the bed.

i mean, i get your point when you say "no reason..."

Could tonneau bending be done from an engineering perspective? Sure

but the problems with a midgate and this tonneau design exist regardless of whether it folds, or whether it's stored below or in the bulkhead.

If the midgate is open, the tonneau will not function.

That means the tonneau must be in either the completely deployed or completely retracted position anytime the midgate is intended to be opened or left open.

• If the tonneau is fully deployed/the vault closed with the midgate open, then anything inside the vault would only be accessible via either the cab or the tailgate.

• If instead the tonneau is retracted/the vault open with the midgate open, then you'll not be closing the tonneau again until the midgate is closed again

These "frozen closed" or "frozen open" tonneau scenarios are the only two scenarios possible when utilizing the midgate.

Now if one thinks through the intended use cases of a midgate (e.g., camping, fitting larger items, etc.), and the intended utility of the tonneau, either "frozen open" or "frozen closed" scenario puts a damper on midgate and tonneau utility.

Then you're left with the "is the juice worth the squeeze" question, weighed against the added engineering/manufacturing complexity and cost of such a midgate. and for a company that is notoriously against added manufacturing complexity.

Then as to whether that added complexity would be manufactured not as standard, but instead as an option? If that added complexity and cost of a material structural difference in the vehicle is deemed not worth manufacturing as standard, i dont see Tesla having alternative manufacturing as an option.

Midgates are not bedliners. It is a material structural, safety, crash-worthiness, feature of the vehicle requiring deep engineering. I can't think of a single example of an optional midgate, and would be surprised to learn of one.

 

[greggertruck]

i mean, i get your point when you say "no reason..."

Could tonneau bending be done from an engineering perspective? Sure

but the problems with a midgate and this tonneau design exist regardless of whether it folds, or whether it's stored below or in the bulkhead.

If the midgate is open, the tonneau will not function.

That means the tonneau must be in either the completely deployed or completely retracted position anytime the midgate is intended to be opened or left open.

• If the tonneau is fully deployed/the vault closed with the midgate open, then anything inside the vault would only be accessible via either the cab or the tailgate.

• If instead the tonneau is retracted/the vault open with the midgate open, then you'll not be closing the tonneau again until the midgate is closed again

These "frozen closed" or "frozen open" tonneau scenarios are the only two scenarios possible when utilizing the midgate.

Now if one thinks through the intended use cases of a midgate (e.g., camping, fitting larger items, etc.), and the intended utility of the tonneau, either "frozen open" or "frozen closed" scenario puts a damper on midgate and tonneau utility.

Then you're left with the "is the juice worth the squeeze" question, weighed against the added engineering/manufacturing complexity and cost of such a midgate. and for a company that is notoriously against added manufacturing complexity.

Then as to whether that added complexity would be manufactured not as standard, but instead as an option? If that added complexity and cost of a material structural difference in the vehicle is deemed not worth manufacturing as standard, i dont see Tesla having alternative manufacturing as an option.

Midgates are not bedliners. It is a material structural, safety, crash-worthiness, feature of the vehicle requiring deep engineering. I can't think of a single example of an optional midgate, and would be surprised to learn of one.

I hate to say it but this may be your best post you've ever made. And it convinced me the midgate isn't practical for multiple reasons.

My specific bed use case is delivering / handling TVs all the time, right? I think we all know that...

85 inch TV, box dims would fit through a 50" midgate opening, but... when it comes time to unload, it'd be troubling with the tonneau wrapped over the top and immobile.

Well said.

I believe the tonneau rolled to a lower point than it did, not the rear window, where the seats had a place to then fold, and that the tonneau wasn't rolling through the seat backs, but rather up it's independent track and down the roof line of the bed.

 

[Ogre]

I hate to say it but this may be your best post you've ever made. And it convinced me the midgate isn't practical for multiple reasons.

My specific bed use case is delivering / handling TVs all the time, right? I think we all know that...

85 inch TV, box dims would fit through a 50" midgate opening, but... when it comes time to unload, it'd be troubling with the tonneau wrapped over the top and immobile.

Well said.

I believe the tonneau rolled to a lower point than it did, not the rear window, where the seats had a place to then fold, and that the tonneau wasn't rolling through the seat backs, but rather up it's independent track and down the roof line of the bed.

Don’t think the midgate will happen. That said, it wouldn’t be too difficult for them to disable the cover when the midgate is open. Then you could open/ close the tailgate to access contents of the now expanded vault.

I think there would also be a small market for a version without the vault cover. It would grant a bit more storage up front and allow for a midgate. Would also be more appealing for the conversion market.

 

[Kahpernicus]

i mean, i get your point when you say "no reason..."

Could tonneau bending be done from an engineering perspective? Sure

but the problems with a midgate and this tonneau design exist regardless of whether it folds, or whether it's stored below or in the bulkhead.

If the midgate is open, the tonneau will not function.

That means the tonneau must be in either the completely deployed or completely retracted position anytime the midgate is intended to be opened or left open.

• If the tonneau is fully deployed/the vault closed with the midgate open, then anything inside the vault would only be accessible via either the cab or the tailgate.

• If instead the tonneau is retracted/the vault open with the midgate open, then you'll not be closing the tonneau again until the midgate is closed again

These "frozen closed" or "frozen open" tonneau scenarios are the only two scenarios possible when utilizing the midgate.

Now if one thinks through the intended use cases of a midgate (e.g., camping, fitting larger items, etc.), and the intended utility of the tonneau, either "frozen open" or "frozen closed" scenario puts a damper on midgate and tonneau utility.

Then you're left with the "is the juice worth the squeeze" question, weighed against the added engineering/manufacturing complexity and cost of such a midgate. and for a company that is notoriously against added manufacturing complexity.

Then as to whether that added complexity would be manufactured not as standard, but instead as an option? If that added complexity and cost of a material structural difference in the vehicle is deemed not worth manufacturing as standard, i dont see Tesla having alternative manufacturing as an option.

Midgates are not bedliners. It is a material structural, safety, crash-worthiness, feature of the vehicle requiring deep engineering. I can't think of a single example of an optional midgate, and would be surprised to learn of one.

You're clearly forgetting about the second storage area for the tonneau cover in the headliner.

 

[Greshnab]

i mean, i get your point when you say "no reason..."

Could tonneau bending be done from an engineering perspective? Sure

but the problems with a midgate and this tonneau design exist regardless of whether it folds, or whether it's stored below or in the bulkhead.

If the midgate is open, the tonneau will not function.

That means the tonneau must be in either the completely deployed or completely retracted position anytime the midgate is intended to be opened or left open.

• If the tonneau is fully deployed/the vault closed with the midgate open, then anything inside the vault would only be accessible via either the cab or the tailgate.

• If instead the tonneau is retracted/the vault open with the midgate open, then you'll not be closing the tonneau again until the midgate is closed again

These "frozen closed" or "frozen open" tonneau scenarios are the only two scenarios possible when utilizing the midgate.

Now if one thinks through the intended use cases of a midgate (e.g., camping, fitting larger items, etc.), and the intended utility of the tonneau, either "frozen open" or "frozen closed" scenario puts a damper on midgate and tonneau utility.

Then you're left with the "is the juice worth the squeeze" question, weighed against the added engineering/manufacturing complexity and cost of such a midgate. and for a company that is notoriously against added manufacturing complexity.

Then as to whether that added complexity would be manufactured not as standard, but instead as an option? If that added complexity and cost of a material structural difference in the vehicle is deemed not worth manufacturing as standard, i dont see Tesla having alternative manufacturing as an option.

Midgates are not bedliners. It is a material structural, safety, crash-worthiness, feature of the vehicle requiring deep engineering. I can't think of a single example of an optional midgate, and would be surprised to learn of one.

i think you may be missing a use case for the midgate.. open the midgate flatten the back seats and the bed goes from the tailgate to the back of the drivers /passenger seats.. that would be what a 10-11 foot bed? it wouldn't be as wide as most of the bed .. however it WOULD give you the ability to put in longer lengths of cargo and <assuming you loaded with the cover up.. LOCK those 10' long sections of wood/pipe/whatever

 

[Galactus55]

Genuinely curious what allyou use your PP outlets for that it’s so mission critical?

 

[tidmutt]

How often have you had a flat requiring roadside swap?

Honestly curious, cause in my 25+ years driving, I have had to do that exactly zero times. But I do know someone who seems to have a flat every 4 months, but I chalk that up to her driving way too fast on pot hole ridden streets without making any effort to avoid the potholes, on a benz with low profile tires. I drive the same streets and make an effort to avoid barreling straight through the same potholes at speed on ridgeline A/T truck tires and don't seem to have come close to getting a flat.

I just think that on big chunky truck tires, driving even on crappy roads for a decent chunk of long distance road trips, the likelihood of needing to swap a flat on the side of the road is pretty damn low.

But It would be nice to have a spare, just like every car on earth has.

Many times, but I tend to drive cars with large rims and low profile tires. I like the handling and the looks, but they are more prone to flats. I don't think I've had one from being popped off due to a pothole, it's always been a screw or a nail or one time it was a decent sized chunk of steel, almost looked like a shiv I've had enough flat tires that I bought an aftermarket spare tire kit from my Model Y that I lug around in the trunk. I have it strapped to the back of the rear seat. What's nuts, is I currently have a small threaded bolt of some kind in my drivers side rear tire with a slow leak. It drops a few PSI over 24 hours so I keep it topped up until I can visit a tire shop for a repair... sigh... Honestly, I really wish Tesla would engineer an under trunk false floor space saver spare for the Y. My Golf R had one (although I had to order it separately). I would be willing to give up a little vertical space in the trunk to have that option so the spare was neatly and securely tucked away.

I'm somewhat looking forward to owning a truck that I hope will used tires that are less susceptible to damage from road debris. I really think they should offer a nice solution to store the tire if possible. If it can't go under the bed, then provide an option to secure it in the bed whilst taking up minimal space. I realize this doesn't work for "real" truck owners, but it's better than nothing at all.

 

[cvalue13]

yes of course!

in the context of the prior discussion (e.g., how many plugs of what variety would fit in that CT bed hatch) i was interpreting the other member's post of "Tesla needs to match the Ford Power Pro outlets or it's a dealbreaker for me" to mean, eg., there need to be 4 X 120v outlets in addition to a 240v outlet, then perhaps a similar number of outlets in the frunk, etc.

if that were the case, i was curious what might necessitate needing the 4 X 120v outlets in addition to a 240v outlet

the lightning powering the house above is presumably utilizing the 240v outlet to a genny plug - if someone says they need a 240v plus a couple 120v, i get it.

for the same reasons, i have every confidence that Tesla will have a 240v outlet in the bed of the CT, plus at least one but almost certainly 2 X 120v outlets

those 3 could fit there. they're wildly useful. and it'd be an uncharacteristic gaff for Tesla not to

 

[cvalue13]

i think you may be missing a use case for the midgate.. open the midgate flatten the back seats and the bed goes from the tailgate to the back of the drivers /passenger seats.. that would be what a 10-11 foot bed? it wouldn't be as wide as most of the bed .. however it WOULD give you the ability to put in longer lengths of cargo and <assuming you loaded with the cover up.. LOCK those 10' long sections of wood/pipe/whatever

are you suggesting that I missed that the midgate...


... would be a midgate?

the point was that people hauling 10' long sections of wood/pipe/whatever, will tend to expect to be able to either or both (1) deploy the tonneau to protect the load, or (2) retract the tonneau to reach and unload

@greggertruck 's example is a prime one. to load that sized TV box, you want the tonneau stored to get a person or two up into the bed to gently maneuver the box into the cabin/bed. then you want to be able to deploy the tonneau to protect/lock the load in the CT while you stop at the neighborhood stripclub for lunch break

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